Iran ready to aid Iraqi army against terrorism

Tehran, Jan 6: Iran is ready to provide military aid to the Iraqi army to help it in the fight against Al Qaeda affiliated groups if the Arab country asks for such a help from Tehran, a senior defence official has said.

Tehran, however, will not conduct any joint operation with the US in the country, he added.

“We have not received any official request yet, but if they make a request, we will certainly provide them with equipment and consultations,” reported Xinhua Monday citing Brigadier General Mohammad Hejazi, deputy chairman of Iran’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The Iraqi army has enough troops to deal with the terrorists and there is no need for sending Iranian troops, the commander said, however, adding that Iran will not conduct any joint operation with the US against Al Qaeda in Iraq.

The US Sunday voiced support for Iraq’s ongoing efforts to combat an Al Qaeda affiliate which has taken control of a big city in Anbar province.

In a conversation with Iraqi National Security Adviser Faleh al-Fayyad over the phone, Anthony Blinken, a deputy American national security adviser to President Barack Obama, expressed US support for government operations in Anbar province to fight the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), commonly known as Al Qaeda in Iraq.

ISIL fighters seized both Fallujah and Ramadi, the provincial capital, Wednesday, the first since the American troops withdrew in late 2011. The Iraqi security forces have retaken Ramadi.